Apparatus for annealing merchant bars



Jan. 12, 1937.

J. T. FLAHERTY 2,067,525 APPARATUS FOR ANNEALING MERCHANT BARS FiledApril 1, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet l w/r/vgssm Jfi 9 TIQ/ENTOR. BY JP/ 0%/wcolm r w WM Q ATTORNEYJ'.

Jan. 12, 1937. J. T. FLAHERTY 2,067,525

' APPARATUS FOR ANNEALING MERCHANT BARS Filed April 1, 1936 sSheets-Sheet 2' INVENTOR. $19K j BY J/ -r m ju'tafl -r M ATTORNEYJ.

WIT NESSEJ J. T. FLAHERTY APPARATUS- FOR ANNEALING MERCHANT BARS FiledApril 1, 1936 W/TNESJEJ MOM BY 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 1N VENTOR.

tenance costs.

slanted Jan 12, 1937 ,omszs APJPTUS roa ANNE mncnam' BARS John T.Flaherty, Pittsburgh, Pa, assignor to United Engineering & FoundryCompany,

Pittsburgh, Pa, a corporation of Pennsylvania Application April 1, 1936,Serial No. 72,093

17 Claims.

This invention relates to mechanism for handling metal bars or the like,and is more particularly concerned with apparatus for the pack annealingor controlled cooling of merchant bar.

In the manufacture of metal bar such as merchant bar it is oftendesirable to pack or self- 'anneal them as by stacking a plurality ofthe hot bars together so that the heat of the metal is retained in thepack for a considerable time to effect the desired annealing action.Ordinarily merchant bar is annealed in this manner directly after itleaves the hot rolling mill, and the process is capable of being usedwith bars of various sizes and shapes.

Prior to my invention apparatus has been pro- I vided for pack annealingthe relatively heavy and hot merchant bar. However, these formerapparatus have been quite complicated in nature and necessitateconsiderable initial and main- Likewise they are not adapted to readilyprovide for a controlled cooling or a varying amount of annealing of thebar.

It is the object of the present invention to avoid and overcome thedifficulties of known apparatus for pack annealing merchant bar by theprovision of simple, rugged and durable mechanism which is relativelyinexpensive but adapted to rapidly handle hot merchant bar of varioussizes as it'comes from the hot rolling mill, and to form the bar intothe desired annealing packs or to efiect controlled cooling thereof.Another object of the invention is to provide pack-annealing mechanismwherein the annealing operation is substantially continuous with barsbeing constantly added to one end and removed from the other end of thepack.

Another object of the invention is the provision cf pack-annealingapparatus which is easily operated to pack anneal merchant bar withoutscratching or other injury to the bar.

Another object of the invention is to provide apparatus which can beoperated to eflect sub-' stantially any desired extent of pack annealingor controlled cooling of merchant bar.

A further object of my invention is the provision of apparatus of thecharacter described which can be operated to clear the annealing bed ofbars one at a time when no more bars are 'added to the pack.

The foregoing and other objects of the invention are achieved byproviding apparatus which includes a hot run-out table, a bar-annealingbed positioned adjacent the table, a transfer means positioned betweenthe bed and the table for receiving the bars from the table and standingthem on edge on the bed, and a cooling table for receiving the bars fromthe annealing bed. The annealing bed is mounted for movement to and fromor completely below the transfer means,

and means are provided for effecting reciprocating movement of the bed.Thus in the practice of the invention the bars and the annealing bed aremoved away from the transfer means as a new bar is added to the bed butare moved back below the transfer means to engage the bars with the 1transfer means thereby to place the added bar on end of the pack and toforce one or more bars oil the other end of the bed onto the coolingtable.

In a modified form of the invention the transfer means is adapted tohold one or more bars for individual cooling before they are added tothe pack whereby the desired annealing action can be obtained as well asincreasing the capacity of the apparatus.

In practicing the invention in either form it is possible to adjust thereciprocating movement of the annealing bed so as to allow the bars topack anneal to any desired extent or to cause the transfer means toplace the bars directly upon the cooling table.

The present invention comprises a continuation-in-part of my copendingapplication, Serial No. 29,701, filed July 3, 1935, and entitledApparatus for handling and annealing metal bar and the like.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is a plan view partly broken away of oneembodiment of my invention; Fig. 2 is a longitudinal verticalcross-sectional view taken on line 11-11 of Fig. 1; Fig. 3 is a viewsimilar to Fig. 2 but of a modified form of the invention; Fig. 4 is atransverse vertical cross-sectional view taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 2and with the cooling bed eliminated to better illustrate the feature ofconstruction of the remaining apparatus; and Fig. 5 is a transverse 4vertical cross-sectional view taken on line VV of Fig. 2 andillustrating the construction of the cooling table.

Although the apparatus is adapted to handle and anneal various strip andbar materials within relatively wide limits, it is particularly designedfor the pack or self-annealing of metal merchant bar which is ordinarilyrectangular in cross section, and accordingly the apparatus isillustrated and described as handling bar of this type. The rectangularbar is, for example, from 2 to 12 inches wide and from 1 up to 2 inchesthick. Its length varies considerably, as, for example, from 100 to 300feet. However, it should be appreciated that bar of other crosssections, such as rounds, squares, angles, etc., can be handled, andthat ordinarily the present apparatus, when made commercially, isconstructed to handle the largest sizes as it then is capable ofhandling the smaller sizes.

As will be recognized, due to the size of the bar handled, the apparatusof the present invention is quite wide and long, but since itsconstruction comprises a substantial duplication at laterally spacedareas, the drawings have been broken away after illustrating several ofthe duplicate means.

Referring to Figs. 1 and 2, the invention includes a hot run-out tableW, a. pack-annealing bed l2, and a cooling bed I l. Positioned betweenthe hot run-out table and the annealing bed are transfer means showngenerally at 85 for receiving the merchant bar from the hot run-outtable and standing it on edge on the annealing bed.

The hot run-out table l0, which usually receives the hot merchant bardirectly from the rolling mill, may take a plurality of forms, butpreferably comprises a base 20 having rollers 2i journaled thereon anddriven by suitable means such as individual motors 22. Associated withthe side of the hot run-out table l0 are laterally extending inclinedskids 23 which function to receive the merchant bar, marked 3', from thehot run-out table.

Means are provided for laterally moving the bar B from the run-out tableII] onto the skids 23, and this means may include pusher arms 25 eachhaving its lower end pivotally connected, as at 26, to a link 27 whichis pivotally secured to a bracket 28 fixed to the base 20. 7 The arms 25are oscillated by a crank shaft 29 journaled in the base 20 and havingcrank portions 30 received in bearings 3| formed on the pusher arms. Thecrank-shaft 29 is driven in any preferred manner as, for example, by amotor 32 through a gear box 33. Thus when the motor 32 is driven to turncrank-shaft 29 each pusher arm 25 moves from its retarded full-lineposition seen in Fig. 2 up to and past the dotted-line position in thesame figure to push the merchant bar B onto the inclined skids 23.

Positioned adjacent the lower end of the skids 23 is the transfer means,indicated generally at l6, which includes a plurality of rotatable means35 preferably mounted upon a common shaft 36 at laterally or morestrictly axially spaced points thereon and driven by means, such as amotor 3'8, through a gear box 38. The shaft 36 carrying the rotatablemeans 35 is journaled in suitable axially spaced bearings 45. Eachof therotatable means 35, as best seen in Fig. 2, comprises a wheel or drumhaving'one or more bar-receiving notches or recesses 40 formed on itsouter surface.

The notches 40 in the several rotatable means 35 are aligned to formgroups each of which is adapted to receive a bar B. The position of theskids 23 and the rotatable means 35 is such that merchant bar slidinglaterally off the hot run-out table and down the skids 23 moves into thenotches 40 in a substantially tangential direction. The bar is receivedin the notches when they are near the uppermost point in their arcuatemovement. As evident from the arrangement of parts shown in Fig. 2, thenotches 40 illustrated in position to receive a merchant bar from theskids 23 are slightly beyond their uppermost position so that the bottomof each notch is in substantial alignment with the surface of the skids23.

Rotation of the rotatable means 35 through an arc of about 60 depositsthe bar carried in a group of notches 40 upon the annealing bed H2. Therotatable means 35, as best seen in Fig. 1, are positioned along theshaft 36 so that the distance between them is somewhat less than theshortest bar to be handled so that in transferring the bar more than oneof the means carry it regardless of its length.

The annealing bed l2 for receiving the merchant bar B from the transfermeans l6 comprises a plurality of laterally spaced relatively narrowbed-forming members 50 which, as best seen in Fig. 4, are gibbed tobases 52 so as to have longitudinal sliding movement thereon. Suitablemeans are provided for effecting reciprocating movement of thebed-forming members 50 toward and from or completely under the transfermeans it, and in the form of the invention illustrated this meanscomprises racks 58 secured to'the bottom of the bed-forming members 50and engaged with gears 56 secured to a shaft 58 carried in bearings 59and operable by a motor 6i through a gear box 32.

As will be evident from Figs. 1 and 4, the bedforming members 50 beingrelatively narrow can be easily moved in between or completely under therotatable means 35 of the transfer mechanism which is necessary in theoperation of the apparatus as will be evident as this descriptionproceeds.

The cooling table shown generally at is comprises a plurality of grillbars 66 carried in frames 61 and mounted on bases 68. The cooling tableextends between the bed-forming members 50 of the annealing bed to apoint adjacent the transfer means l6 but is suitably recessed to allowfor free reciprocating movement of the bed-forming members and, as bestevident from Fig. 2, the cooling table is slightly below the surface ofthe bedforming members 50 so that the bar carried on the annealing bedcan move above the surface of the cooling table without'touching it.

At transversely spaced positions, the cooling table It is formed withbar-moving means for cairying the merchant bar along the cooling tablein spaced relation. Mechanism for this purpose, in the form of theinvention illustrated, comprises carriages 12 having wheels 13 engagingwith and supported by tracks 16. The carriages l2 mount a plurality ofcounter-balanced fingers 18 which are called ducking dogs in the trade,inasmuch as in movement of the carriages in one direction the dogs duckor tilt to pass beneath the merchant bar on the cooling table, but whenthe carriages are moved in the other direction the dogs can not duck andthus move the bar along the cooling table for the stroke of thecarriage. The carriages 12 are reciprocated in any suitable manner, asfor example, by the provision of a motor operating through a reversinggear box 86 to oscillate a crank shaft 81 connected of rotatable means35a spaced axially of the shaft 36aand comprising wheels or drums havingnotches 40a formed on their peripheries. Substantially the onlydifference between the .apparatus illustrated in Fig. 3 and that shownin Fig. 2 is that each rotatable means 35a has a greater number ofbar-receiving notches formed on its periphery. This is for the purposeof providing a mid-station between the skids and the annealing bed sothat the capacity of the apparatus is increased and so that each bar hasa certain amount of cooling after it leaves the hot run-out table andbefore it is added to the pack of bars on the annealing bed. In order toprovide the mid-point or dwell in the operation of the transfer meansdesired position on the table.

Ilia, the skids 23a are positioned to feed the merchant bar into a groupof aligned notches 40a when they are substantially at the top of their.rotary movement. Accordingly the arc of movement of each bar from theskids to the annealing bed is approximately 90 so that stepped rotarymovement of the rotatable means 35a in arcsof about 45 effectsthe'desired operation as hereafter more fully explained.

The invention likewise contemplates'providing more than a singlemid-point for each, mer

chant bar between the skids 23a of the annealing bed l2a, and this canbe accomplished by increasing'the number of notches 40a in the rotatablemeans 35a and correspondingly decreasing the stepped arcuate movementthereof. Ordinarily if this is to be done the cross-sectional size ofbar handled must be relatively small.

In the operation of the apparatus shown in Figs. 1, 2, 4 and 5, themerchant bar B is received on the hot run-out table l which is controlled:by the operator so as to'stop the bar in the The operation ofthe push-off arms 25, whose position is controlled by motor 32,'islikewise under thecare of the operator, and the bar B, when desired, ismoved laterally ofif the hot run-off table l0 and onto the inclinedskids 23. The bar slides down the skids 23 by gravity and into notches40 of the rotatable means 35 which have been stopped in the positionshown in Fig. 2 so that the notches are in aligned relation with theskids 23. The movement of each bar down the inclined skids and thesudden stopping of the bar in the notches 50 serve to straighten thebars to remove curves or kinks formed in' rolling and this operationlikewise efiects removal of any loose scale on the bars. The angle andlength of the skids 23 determine the effective straightening actionobtained. It will be recognized that the bar thus moves onto therotatable means 35 in a substantially tangential direction and with thenotches 40 near their highest point of arcuate movement.

The operator now moves the annealing bedforming members 50 to the dottedline position shown in Fig. 2 by operation of the motor 6| andassociated mechanism. This movement of the annealing bed l2 as a wholeaway from the transfer means carries the bars B stacked on the bed awayfrom the transfer means so as toprovide a relatively small clearancebetween the last bar on the bed and the transfer means. The shaft 36carrying the rotatable transfer means 35 is then rotated through an arcof about 60 by the opera- .tion of the motor 31. Thus the bar carried bythe notches 40 is moved down until it engages with the annealing bedwhich receives it on edge, and the rotary movement of the means 35 iscontinued to bring the. next group of aligned notches 40 intobar-receiving position relative to the inclined skids 23. The annealingbed l2 comprised of the bed-forming members 50 effects the removal ofthe bars B from the notches 40 inasmuch as the members 50 extendinwardly of the outer circumference of the rotatable means 35 as isevident from Figs. 1 and 2.

The bar B which has been deposited upon the annealing bed I2 is usuallyat a slight angle engaging both with the pack of bars on the bed andwith the rotatable means 35. When the operator has stopped the rotarymovement of the transfer means I6, he then energizes the motor 6| tomove the annealing bed toward the transfer means so that the newly addedbar is forced against and becomes apart of the pack on the annealingbed. In this operation the added bar of the pack engages with theinclined surfaces of the notches 40 of the transfer means which act asinclined stops to align the bar and the pack on the annealing bed.Further movement of the annealing bed toward the transfer means pushesone or more bars off the annealing bed a ts opposite end and onto thecooling table l4.

The number of bars removed from the bed in this manner is dependent uponthe extent of movement of the annealing bed toward and between thetransfer means. ing the apparatus the extent of movement is such that asingle bar is removed from the annealing bed. Since no stops areprovided between the off together and perhaps no bars at all on oneparticular reciprocating stroke of the bed.

In all events, the resulting operation when performed rapidly intheusual commercial manner to continuously add bars at the end of theannealing bed adjacent the transfer means effects a continuous removalof one or more of the bars from the other end of the bed and onto thecooling table. The bars are fed across the cooling table If by thereciprocating movement of the carriages 12 and the ducking dogs 18 in amanner which is well understood in the art.

The operation of the modified form of the invention illustrated in Fig.3 is substantially the same as that just described with the exceptionthat each of the rotatable means 35a of the transfer means lBa is formedwith an extra number of notches 40a so that movement of the merchant barlaterally of the hot run-out table Illa and onto the skids 23a causesthe bar to catch in one group of aligned notches 40a. The first arcuatemovement of the rotatable means 35a, generally of about $5 degrees,causes the merchant bar to move too, position between the annealing bedI20. and the position in which it was received from the skids. Anothermerchant bar is then received in the next group of aligned notches 40aand the next arcuate movement of the rotary means 35a causes the firstbar to be moved onto the annealing table [2a and the second bar to moveto the mid-position. In this manner the apparatus is adapted to receivean additional bar from the hot rolling mill and to provide for somepreliminary cooling of each bar before it is added to the annealingpack. The remaining operation of the modified form of apparatus shown inFig. 3 is identical with that above described.

If it is desired to employ either form of the apparatus for the purposeof handling hot metal bars, and more particularly for merely cooling thebars without pack annealing, the annealing bed I2 or [2a is movedcompletely under the transfer means I6; i.,e., from the fullline to thedotted line position of Fig. 3, so that the bars are received from thetransfer means directly upon the cooling table M or Ida. Another important feature of the invention resides in the operation of either typeof apparatus described nance costs.

to'effect any desired amount of annealing action. to the bed and forthen moving the bed back This is readily accomplished by merely varyingtheeifective operatinglength of the annealing beds l2 or [2a. In otherwords, more or less of the annealing beds may be moved under thetransfer means l6 and I 6a so that the number of bars contained in thepack during annealing can be varied from none up to a full pack.

Furthermore the apparatus is self-clearing without requiring additionalmechanism. In other words, when .no more bars are added to the pack,those already forming the pack can readily be removed one by one bymerely moving the annealing bed under the transfer means step by step.

The stated objects of the invention are achieved by the apparatus justdescribed in that the annealing and handling mechanism is simple, ruggedand inexpensive in initial and mainte- It will handle merchant bar ofwidely varying shapes and sizes, and can be operated easily to effectany desired extent of pack annealing or a direct cooling operationwithout modification of its structure.

While in accordance with the patent statutes several embodiments of theinvention have been illustrated and described in detail, it should beunderstood that the invention is not limited thereto or thereby, but isdefined in the appended claims. t

I claim: a

1. Apparatus for handling merchant bar comprising a substantiallyhorizontal hot'run-out table, a substantially horizontal pack annealingbed positioned laterally of the hot run-out table,

rotatable transfer means positioned between the bed and the table forreceiving the bars from the table and standing them on edge on the bed,means for moving the bed and the bars thereon away from the transfermeans as a new bar is added to the bed and for then moving the bed backbelow the transfer means but with the bars engaging it to place theadded bar on one end of the pack and to force a'bar off the other end ofthe pack, and a cooling table for receiving the bars forced off the bedand for carrying them in spaced relation away from the bed, the meansfor moving the bed being adapted to move it completely below thetransfer means so that the bars are received directly by the coolingtable if desired.

2. Apparatus for handling merchant bar comprising a hot run-out table, apack-annealing bed positioned laterally of the hot run-out table,transfer means positioned between the bed and the table for receivingthe bars from the table and 'standing them on edge on the bed, means forto force a bar off the other end of the pack, and

a cooling table for receiving the bars forced off the bed and forcarrying them in spaced relation away from the bed.

3. Apparatus for handling merchant bar comprising a hot run-out table, apack-annealing bed positioned laterally of the hot run-out table,

transfer means positioned betweerf the bed and the table fortransferring the bars from the table from the transfer means as a newbar is added below the transfer means but with thebars engaging it toplace the added bar on one end of the pack and to force a bar off theother end of the pack.

4; Apparatus for handling merchant bar comprising a hot run-out table, apack-annealing bed positioned adjacent the hot run-out table, transfermeans positioned between the bed and the table for receiving the barsfrom the table and placing them on the bed, means for moving the bed andthe bars thereon away from the transfer means as a new bar is added tothe bed and for then moving the bed back below the transfer means butwith the bars engaging it to place the added bar on one end of the packand to force a bar oif theother end of the pack, a cooling table forreceiving the bars forced off the bed and for carrying them in spacedrelation away from the bed, and means for moving the annealing bed to aposition where the bars are placed directly on the cooling table by thetransfer means. v

5. Apparatus for pack annealing merchant bar and the like comprising aplurality of rotatable means mounted in axially spaced positions on arotatable shaft, each means including at least one notch for receiving abar, the notches being aligned on the plurality of means, means formoving a bar in turn in a substantially tangential direction into thenotches when they are near their uppermost arc of rotation, an annealingbed for removing the bar on edge from the rotatable means after theyhave carried it through an arc, means for reciprocating the annealingmeans toward and from or completely under the rotatcluding at least onenotch for receiving a bar,

the notches being aligned on the plurality of means, means for moving abar in turn into the notches, an annealing bed for removing the bar fromthe rotatable means after they have carried it through an arc of lessthan about ninety degrees, and means for reciprocating the annealing bedtoward and from or complete] un r the rotatable means. y de '7. Aparatus for pack annealingmerchant bar and the like comprising aplurality of rotatable means mounted in axially spaced positions on arotatable shaft, each means including a plurality of notches which arealigned on the plurality of means to form groups each adapted to receivea bar in turn, means for moving a bar in turn into the notches when theyare near their uppermost are of rotation, means for removing the bar onedge from the rotatable means after they have carried it through an arc,and means for reciprocating the removingmeans from the rotatable meansprior to the removing operation and to-' ward the rotatable meansbetween removing operations.

8. Apparatus for pack annealing merchant bar and the like comprising'aplurality of transfer .means mounted for arcuate movement, each meansincluding at least one notch for receiving a bar, the notches beingaligned on the plurality of means, means for moving a bar into thenotches means for removing the bar on edge from the transfer means afterthey have carried it through an arc of less than about ninety degrees,and means for moving the removing means away from the transfer meansprior to removal of a bar and toward the transfer means after removal ofa bar.

9. In combination, an inclined conveyor for moving merchant barlaterally, an annealing bed for laterally receiving the bar, a pluralityof axially spaced rotatable means for receiving the bar from theconveyor and depositing it on edge on the bed, means for moving the bedtoward and from the rotatable means whereby to leave space for thereception of an added bar and then to force the end bar off the bed, andacooling table for receiving the bars forced off the bed.

10. In combination, an inclined conveyor for moving merchant bar, anannealing. bed for receiving the bar, a plurality of simultaneouslyoperated means for receiving the bar from the conveyor and depositing iton edge on the bed, means for'changing the length of the bed to vary thesize ofthe pack of bars annealed thereon, and a cooling table forreceiving the bars from the bed.

11. In combination, an inclined conveyor for moving merchant bar, acooling table for receiving the bar, an annealing'bed adjustabiypositioned over the table, transfer means for receiving the bar from theconveyor and depositing it on edge on the bed, and means for'moving thebed toward and from the transfer means.

12. Mechanism for pack annealing merchant bar comprising a substantiallyhorizontal an nealing bed, means for reciprocating the bed, a pluralityof stops at one end of the bed between which the bed can be moved butwhich engage any bars on the bed to move one or more bars off the otherend of the bed when it is moved between the stops, and means associatedwith the stops for placing a bar on edge on the bed between the stopsand the bars already on the bed when it is moved away from the stops.

13. Mechanism for the controlled cooling of merchant bar comprising anannealing bed, means for moving the bed substantially in the plane ofits surface, a stop at one end of the bed below which the bed can bemoved but which engages any bars on the bed to move one or more bars offthe other end of the bed when it is moved below the stop, and meansassociated with the stop for placing a bar on edge on the bed betweenthe stop and the bars already on the bed when the bed is moved toprovide clearance between the bars thereon and the stop.

14. Mechanism for the controlled cooling of merchant bar comprising anannealing bed, means for moving the bed substantially in the plane ofits surface, a stop at one end of the bed below which the bed can bemoved but which engages-any bars on the bed to move one or more bars offthe other end of the bed when it is moved below the stop, a hot run-outtable and means associated with the stop for receiving a bar from thetable and depositing it on the bed.

15. Mechanism for the controlled cooling of merchant bar comprising aconveyor, an annealing bed, means for reciprocating the bed, a rotatablestop at one end of the bed below which the bed can be moved but whichengages any bars on the bed to move one or more bars off .the other'endof the bed when the bed is moved below the stop, said-rotatable stophaving means for receiving a bar from the conveyor and adapted to placeit on the bed and means for turning the stop.

16. In combination, a hot run-out table, an inclined slide positioned atthe side of the table, a

pack-annealing bed adjacent the lower end of the slide, means for movingthe bar laterally off the hot run-out table onto the slide, means fortransferring the bar from the slide and placing it on edge on theannealing bed, means for moving the annealing bed to and from orcompletely below the transfer means and a cooling table for reecivingthe bar from the bed.

1'7. In combination, a hot run-out table, a slide positioned at the sideof the table, a pack-annealing bed adjacent the slide, means for movingthe bar laterally oif the hot run-out table onto the slide, means fortransferring the bar from the slide and placing it on edge on theannealing bed,

and means formoving the annealing bed to and from the transfer means.

JOHN T.

